Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction

Subject: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: Sorcha
Date: 13 Aug 01 - 01:34 PM

Hey, fans! Go forth and chekck this out! We don't want SINSULL to break her resolutions, now do we?

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Aug 01 - 07:42 AM

refresh

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: Sorcha
Date: 16 Aug 01 - 05:56 PM

Hello??? Anybody out there?

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: Matthew Edwards
Date: 16 Aug 01 - 06:08 PM

There's a song in the book Il Me Dhu Vetrim which isn't in the DT, nor accessible via Supersearch as yet. Please kytrad, post it in Lyr Add so we can share it.

Subject: Il Me Dhu Vetrim - Waulking Song
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 16 Aug 01 - 07:14 PM

It's a Hebridian waulking song, with a strong lead voice on the two lines of each verse, with all singing the refrain between each line. The last line of each verse becomes the first line of the following verse. We recorded the singers in Gaelic, but Seamus Ennis went through the song with me, explained the structure, and gave me a sense of the meaning of the words, or the poem. I made a loose translation, so that our children could sing it in English. So far, no one has complained, but you may be the first! But that was when I was young and foolish- I've (probably) lived long enough not to tamper with the old songs so quickly, now. But anyway, even back then, Seamus thought it was a pretty good translation:

Late yestre'en I gathered the shellfish
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho! (Row lightly, row, row!)
More to watch your boat returning.
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho!

More to watch your boat returning,
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho!
You my share of this world's treasure.
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho!

You my share of this world's treasure,
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho!
Black the night came down upon me.
Il me dhu vetrim, ho, ho!

Well, this goes on for six more verses...I have an idea- why not let the person who gets the book finish it? He/she will probably know how to do all the clickies and the music. It's a glorious song and one of my favorites of all we found in the fifties. Jean

Mor

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: Matthew Edwards
Date: 17 Aug 01 - 06:34 AM

Jean, thank you for that. I certainly won't complain over your translation; that makes a lovely song, and if Seamus liked it his word is good enough for me. I've loved the waulking songs ever since I heard Flora MacNeil's voice singing Ailein Duinn on the old Caedmon LP. That is a sweet idea of yours to get the auction winner to post the lyrics. Meanwhile thank you very much indeed for donating the booklet via the auction.

Matthew

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 17 Aug 01 - 07:49 AM

Jeez, Mick, at least couldn't you of waited till the last minute to outbid me? Now I have to see it open in the auction for almost 2 weeks not being able to afford it. And the poor wee kiddies and all... *sniff!*

Subject: Waulking
From: Marymac90
Date: 17 Aug 01 - 04:37 PM

Re: the above waulking song--I loved the description of waulking given (by Rita Ferrara, I think) at the Mouth Music workshop at last fall's Getaway. Waulking was part of the process of making wool waterproof, so it would keep sailors and fishermen dry. The woolen fabric had to be soaked in urine (yup!), and then the long lengths of wet fabric had to be laid on a long table, with lots of women and girls sitting alongside it. Each one would pick up the part of the cloth in front of her, and kind of knead it, to the rhythm of the Waulking Song, to work the urine into it thoroughly. When the song reached the end of a verse, each woman would pick up the material in front of her, and pass it to the woman next to her, and the process would begin again. In this way, each part of the cloth was "waulked" by many women's hands.

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: catspaw49
Date: 17 Aug 01 - 05:22 PM

Pardon me while I go throw up somewhere............Hmmmm...Does this have anything to do with a Navy "Pee" Coat?

Spaw

Subject: RE: Jean Ritchie Book in the Auction
From: Dani
Date: 24 Aug 01 - 01:27 PM

Shut up, 'Spaw. You're worse than my fifth-grader.

PJ did that workshop last year, and it was FABULOUS!! She then did a performance that just blew my socks off. It was the first I'd heard of this type of music, and it was beautiful. I love the idea of the men going off wearing coats, capes, whatever, fashioned with lots of hard work by all the women of their community.

There was one really racy one you would've loved, 'Spaw. Come October and we'll sing it for you.

Plus, if you knew how cute she is, you wouldn't make fun of her.

Dani